Eternity
by anaeifly
Summary: Amanda Grayson hates being dragged along to ambassadorial dinners by her brother-until she meets Sarek, and her whole world changes. Rated T for later chapters.
1. First Impressions

The first time Sarek met Amanda Grayson was also the first time he ever felt jealous of another person.

She was standing across the room from him next to a darkly handsome man whom Sarek recognized as Earth's ambassador to Remus, Alec Grayson. She was lovely, a woman of average height and build, her skin tanned a light gold, making her jade green eyes stand out. Her chestnut-colored hair, which was somehow stuck on the borderline between wavy and curly, was pulled up into a slightly messy looking but elaborate bun befitting of the ancient Greek-style ice blue_chiton _she wore.

And, for some reason he could not explain, Sarek found that he actually _felt _for her, even though he did not know her.

* * *

Amanda was bored. Her brother had brought her to yet another of the ambassadors' dinner dances, and the only real reason for it was that he was single and also too scared to ask the person he really wanted to go with—their longtime friend Diana Gemme. Alec was her twin, although they didn't look at all alike—she had curly chestnut hair, green eyes, and fair skin, whereas he had brown eyes, olive skin, and black wavy hair—and possibly for that reason Amanda could not bring herself to be as mad at her brother as she maybe should have been. Diana, with whom Amanda and Alec had been friends since they were children, was also at the dinner (her father was a widowed ambassador to Vulcan), which gave Amanda a little relief. But that night, Diana was not the one who caught Amanda's eye first. It was him.

He was a tall, rather handsome Vulcan, with brown hair so dark it was almost black, and deep, chocolate-brown eyes that seemed to hold every feeling he suppressed. When she looked at him, she couldn't help the fact that looked just a little too long, or how she blushed when he caught her eye. Alec, of course, saw all of this, and decided to intervene. He quickly ended his conversation he had been having with his colleague, took Amanda's arm, and brought her over to Sarek. "Ambassador Sarek," Alec said, inclining his head slightly, "I would like you to meet my sister, Amanda Grayson. Amanda, this is Sarek, the Vulcan ambassador to Earth." Amanda bowed slightly. "Greetings, Ambassador," she said, in English because she did not know Vulcan. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"And you, Ms. Grayson," Sarek replied coolly, inclining his head to her. "Tell me, what is it you do for a living?" Amanda raised one eyebrow, slightly confused. Strange question. Still, she was too glad to be actually speaking to him not to answer. This was going to be an interesting evening.

* * *

Several weeks passed, and Amanda began to actually look forward to the dinners. Sarek had agreed to teach her Vulcan, and she was learning at a rate that she suspected probably surprised him, though he did not show it. When he wasn't teaching her, they talked—about their families, their jobs, everything, and Amanda slowly but steadily found that she was falling in love with him.

* * *

When Amanda walked into the room with her brother, Sarek almost gasped out loud. Her chestnut curls were down, framing her face, and she was wearing a beautiful off-the-shoulder dress, fire red with a gold sheen to it. Around her neck was a necklace he had never seen her wear before—a gold chain about half as thick as a piece rope, with a quarter-sized ruby on the end, nestled in the hollow of Amanda's throat. She looked almost unspeakably lovely. Sarek somehow managed to keep in control for most of the night, until about an hour after dinner. Amanda, Alec, and Sarek were standing together talking when Sarek decided to ask her about the ruby. "Amanda," he began (the two of them had long ago abandoned the practice of addressing each other formally), "may I inquire about your pendant? I have never seen you wear such a thing before."

Amanda's hand came up instinctively to hold the stone in her fingers. "Oh, this?" she replied. "It belonged to my older sister Maria. My parents are ambassadors as well, though retired, and they took Maria with them once to meet the king of Romulus. He was so enchanted by her that he gave her this as a gift."

"I did not know that you had a sister," Sarek said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "She died," Amanda said quietly. "When Alec and I were ten and she was seventeen. A man mistook her for someone else and killed her."

There was a long silence. At last Sarek spoke. "I am very sorry."

"Don't be," she said roughly. "It wasn't your fault." She sighed. "Anyway, officially my parents gave the necklace to me, but they assigned Alec as its keeper, so I have to go through him every time I want to wear it. Not that I really mind—I'm always afraid I'm going to lose it somehow."

"That is highly illogical, as it is far too large not to be seen by anyone with eyes." Amanda laughed. "I know. But still, I can't help worrying." She was clearly quite happy, and Sarek, finding her even more beautiful in that moment, barely noticed that his had lingered too long on Amanda.

Alec glanced at Sarek, then away, and said, "Lovely, Ambassador, is it not?" He turned back to Sarek as he finished speaking, and though he was not smiling or laughing, he looked faintly amused. Sarek felt his ears go slightly green, but ignored it. "Yes, quite," he replied.

Alec was quiet for moment, then said, "If you two will excuse my abrupt departure, I have just realized that, as an ambassador, I must dance to this next song and I wish to snag my intended partner before someone else asks her."

"I'll dance with you," Amanda offered.

"No, that's all right," he replied, walking away quickly.

There was a long, slightly awkward silence before Sarek said, "Will you dance with me? I too must dance, but I have no partner."

Amanda's heart beat a little faster. "I thought Vulcans didn't dance."

"Not normally," Sarek replied, "but I would like to make an exception this one time." He held out his hand to her. "Shall we?"

She took his hand tentatively, feeling extremely nervous, and followed him out to the dance floor. On the way, she caught sight of her brother with Diana and could not help grinning._Finally,_ she thought. The two of them had loved each other for a long time, but neither one had had the courage to do anything about it until now. Diana looked extremely happy. She caught Amanda's eye and gave her a huge, bright smile before her mouth fell open when she saw who her friend was with. Amanda almost laughed out loud, but the music was about to begin. She and Sarek turned so they were facing each other, and he slowly put his hands on her. If he was as nervous as she was, he certainly wasn't showing it, and she was grateful for that. That would only have served to make her even more nervous. The music started, and they began to dance. The two of them both looked abruptly at each other at the same time, making Amanda blush, and she quickly looked away. To her surprise, however, Sarek tilted his head so he could look at her again, and this time she didn't look away. She couldn't.


	2. It's Love

"So, how was it?" Diana asked.

"How was what?" Amanda replied vaguely, absentmindedly fingering the embroidered pattern on the couch. She had been trying to pay attention to what Diana was saying, but really she hadn't heard a word yet.

"Your dance with Ambassador Sarek," Diana said with a slight "duh" tone to her voice.

"Oh, that," Amanda said. "It was nice." She glanced up at her friend with a sly smile. "How was your dance with my brother?"

Diana blushed but pretended she hadn't heard Amanda's question. "Nice? That's all you have to say about it? You two were dancing for such a long time."

Amanda frowned. "Long?" she asked. "It was one song, Di. I don't think that really counts as _long_."

It was Diana's turn to frown. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Of course I am. Why?"

Diana looked into her eyes for several seconds before answering. "Okay, I don't know where your brain went last night when you guys were dancing, but the point is…you danced with Sarek for three songs."

Amanda's mouth fell open. She stared at her friend in horror. "_Please_tell me you're kidding."

"Well, I could, but that would be a lie."

Amanda groaned, covering her eyes with her eyes. "Oh my God. Shit. I feel totally horrible. No wonder he ran off afterwards." She hit her head against the couch. "Damn, I am such an idiot!"

Diana tried to comfort her. "Don't feel too bad," she said quietly, putting her hand on her friend's arm. "To be honest, I don't think he noticed either, at least not until the very end. I mean, it's not like he was just humoring you or anything."

"Yeah, I guess," Amanda said. "But still…seeing him tonight is not going to be fun."

"Oh, stop it. You'll be fine."

"No, I won't."

"Why on earth _not_?" Diana exclaimed. "You're about the strongest person I know."

"I'm not going," her friend replied, crossing her arms over her chest, her face stubborn, her lower lip sticking out slightly.

"What? Oh, no. You are too going."

"I am not."

"What about Alec?"

"He can go with you."

Diana glared at Amanda. "You're being totally ridiculous, you know."

"I am not being ridiculous."

Diana sighed. "Yes, you _are_." She grabbed her friend's hands, pulling Amanda closer to her, and looked straight into her eyes. "Amanda, the only thing stupider than going to the dinner tonight would be _not_going. You have to talk to Sarek about it, figure out what this is between you two, because it's obviously more than friendship. And if you won't go by yourself, I swear to God I will drag you there myself." She searched her friend's eyes. "Got it?"

Amanda sighed, knowing there was no way she could win this. "Fine," she said finally, but it came out sounding more like a groan.

Several hours later, Amanda walked in with Alec, dread mingling with excitement at the thought of seeing Sarek again. Strange that a_Vulcan_, of all people, could evoke such strong emotions in her.

She looked around the room, simultaneously trying to find Sarek and trying to _not_find him, but her brother beat her to it. Alec elbowed her in the ribs and nodded to a far corner of the room.

Amanda followed his gaze, half hoping to find that the Vulcan ambassador was already speaking to someone, but he was quite alone.

She sighed. "I'd better just get this over with, huh?" she said.

"Definitely," Alec replied. He leaned down and kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Good luck."

Amanda smiled. "You too," she said, looking pointedly at Diana.

Her brother blushed slightly, but instead of answering just pushed her toward Sarek. She laughed and started walking slowly towards the ambassador, more nervous with every step.

"Good evening, Ambassador," Amanda said softly in Vulcan, not able to meet his eyes.

Sarek turned to her and raised one eyebrow. "Good evening, Amanda."

Amanda felt herself blush. She hadn't meant to call him "Ambassador", but it had just slipped out anyway. "May I speak with you in private?" she asked, glancing up into his dark brown eyes and immediately looking down again. His eyes were just too intense for her to handle at the moment.

"Of course," he replied. Amanda nodded and led the way out into the courtyard. Once they were outside, she took a deep breath, then turned and forced herself to look into his eyes. She opened her mouth, but she didn't know how to phrase what she wanted to say. Fortunately, Sarek seemed to understand. "What is it, Amanda?" he asked, brushing a piece of hair away from her face.

She took another deep breath, then said, "I just…I wanted to apologize for last night."

Sarek blinked in surprise. "Apologize?" he said blankly.

"Yes. I should have been paying more attention. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable—I know Vulcans don't usually like to touch people, especially not for as long as you were touching me, and—"

"Amanda," Sarek cut in, and she stopped babbling and looked at him. "I was not uncomfortable with you. In fact, I was—I _am—_more comfortable with you, K'diwa, than I have ever been with anyone, human or Vulcan."

Amada frowned slightly, although Sarek could see in her eyes that she was happy. "K'diwa?" she said, confused. "What does that mean?"

Sarek did not hesitate before answering, and Amanda could see love, real_love_, in his eyes as he did so. "It means beloved."


	3. Compatibility (The Blood Thing)

"Sarek, please."

"I _am _kissing you, Amanda," Sarek replied calmly, pressing his index and middle fingers a little harder against hers, and she could see the amusement in his dark eyes.

She couldn't help glaring at him a little. "You know that's not what I meant," she said, irritated.

He raised one eyebrow. "Have you changed your mind about keeping our relationship a secret?" Amanda bit her lip, surprised by the question and, admittedly, by Sarek's ease in making her change her mind. She didn't really want to hide their relationship, but she knew there were many people who would react less than favorably to a human marrying a Vulcan, and some of them were here tonight, not very far from her and Sarek. How any of them had managed to become ambassadors was beyond her, but they were here.

He noticed her hesitation and took advantage of it. "If you have," he said, "then I will most certainly indulge your request. However, if your opinion remains the same, I must point out that we are far too exposed here to risk a human kiss. Perhaps your brother would allow me to escort you home later."

Amanda scowled. "He can't tell me what to do," she said, the hint of a growl in her voice. Sarek raised his eyebrow again, and Amanda sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just…these stupid dinners are starting to wear on me. Why can't Ntara just make her decision already?" She practically spat out the name, and Sarek could hardly blame her. The Romulan ambassador was becoming a source of annoyance for many these days.

Amanda supposed she probably wouldn't give a damn about Ntara if it wasn't for the fact that her reluctance (or refusal, to put it another way) to negotiate with the other ambassadors wasn't stealing away most of Amanda's time with both Sarek and her brother.

Ntara was the Romulan ambassador who had been sent to negotiate the terms of an agreement for the colonists on a recently discovered planet called Marina V. The Vulcans had been the first to discover the planet, followed shortly by Romulans and then Andorians, and there was now a group of Terrans who wanted to join the colony. Most of the potential colonists were young adults by their society's standards, with the exception of a Vulcan geneticist named T'Vina. Apparently there was a high probability of a few inter-species relationships developing on Marina V—_if _Ntara would agree to the terms of the treaty.

Sarek raised an eyebrow slightly. "It is not uncommon for Romulans to be less than fond of members of other species, particularly Vulcans. I must admit, however, that as nearly all the potential Romulan colonists for Marina V are young and not of this opinion, whoever appointed Ntara as ambassador was negligent in their duties."

Amanda couldn't help laughing a little at that, and she could see Sarek's happiness at her laughter in his dark eyes. She leaned a little closer to him, not quite far enough apart for propriety, considering she was sitting with a Vulcan, but not close enough to arouse suspicion. "Maybe you _could_ ask Alec about walking me home," she said lightly, staring at the stars. "I miss you."

Sarek was silent for a moment. "It would be advantageous," he said finally. "There was something I had wished to discuss with you." Amanda turned back to him, her eyes narrowing slightly as she searched his face. In the past four months that they had been dating, she had learned to read him even better than before, and she noticed now that he seemed uncomfortable and…reluctant. Hmm. That couldn't be good.

"What is it?" she demanded immediately.

Sarek let out a tiny sigh. "It is nothing you need concern yourself with now, Amanda. I will speak with you about it later." He glanced at the chronometer. "Now, however, we must return inside."

Amanda sighed. She _hated _diplomatic functions.

* * *

Sarek was, admittedly somewhat nervous as he and Amanda left Alec after a few more hours of talking. Ntara had finally acquiesced to the agreement, due in large part to her own daughter Ntela, who was one of the aspiring colonists. There was little left to do after that, as the Andorians, Vulcans, and Terrans had already agreed to the terms, and though he was somewhat relieved at that, his relief was nothing compared to his anxiety over what he needed to speak to Amanda about.

The two of them walked together in silence for several minutes before Sarek finally spoke. "Amanda," he said, somewhat hesitantly. "I wish to ask something of you."

Amanda looked up, straight into his eyes, and the beauty of them distracted him for a moment. "Anything."

He paused. "I…every seven years of an adult male Vulcan's life, he enters a mating cycle called pon farr. At that time, his cyanocloridrian count rises to dangerously high levels, causing an abnormal increase in sexual arousal and desire, as well as a predilection towards giving into emotions with an increased propensity towards anger and violence. During adult pon farr it becomes excessively difficult to suppress emotions, especially those of anger or of a violent nature. The levels of sexual arousal and desire increase to point that the urge to mate is overwhelming." He looked down at Amanda and was simultaneously relieved and dismayed to see the comprehension on her face.

"Okay," she said slowly, nodding once. Sarek took that as an invitation to continue, and did so with some reluctance. He trusted Amanda, he loved her more than he would have ever thought himself capable of loving anyone, but it was hard to explain this to her. What if she found the idea repulsive?

Sarek quickly brushed away those feelings and went on. "My bondmate and I dissolved our bond shortly after my last pon farr. Vulcans are tested for compatibility and bonded at the age of seven. As it turned out, however, our minds were not nearly as compatible as had been believed, and the bond was uncomfortable for us." He breathed slowly in. "My next pon farr is approaching; I have estimated that it will start approximately four weeks from now." Sarek met Amanda's gaze. "I realize it is rather short notice, but if we are compatible with one another, I would like to bond with you at that time."

Amanda's reply was immediate and, admittedly, rather unexpected. "Of course."

Sarek stared at her. "Are you certain?" he asked after a moment, searching her face for any signs that she might not be sure, but he could find none. Amanda sighed.

"_Yes_, I'm sure. How do we figure out if we're compatible?"

"When a human bonds with a Vulcan," Sarek replied, "until, and even after they mate, the protobacteria and mitochondria in human hemoglobin often multiply, mirroring the rising levels in cyanocloridrians in their bondmate. Once the bondmates copulate and bodily fluids are exchanged, cyanochloridrians are transferred and mutate a percentage of the mitochondria present to act as cyanochloridrians during pon farr, allowing the human bondmate to experience a sympathetic simulation of the symptoms experienced by their Vulcan mate, making it easier for them to withstand the intensity of mating during pon farr. It is a complex biological process that has yet to be explained by either Vulcan or Earth science, for it should not be physiologically possible and our species should not be reproductively compatible, yet they are."

"So you need some of my blood?" Amanda asked after several seconds.

"It would be the simplest to determine our compatibility, yes," Sarek replied, "considering the relatively short amount of time remaining before I enter pon farr."

"Okay." The word was out of Amanda's mouth almost before Sarek had even finished speaking. "Let's do it."


End file.
